Electronics Process Technician

Viasat, Inc. • Carlsbad, CA

6d • Onsite

About The Position

Viasat is seeking an experienced Electronics Process Technician specializing in Air-Vac hot air rework stations, particularly the DRS25 system. The role supports Engineering by performing precise, complex rework on Printed Wiring Assemblies (PWAs) and Surface Mount Technology (SMT) components, including thermal profiling, component removal, and site dressing for high-value aerospace and defense electronics in compliance with aviation and defense quality standards.

The position may also involve troubleshooting technical issues from production and the field, supporting component-change qualification efforts, helping transition prototype units to low-rate initial production, providing lab support and management, setting up and maintaining test and development hardware, and performing board checkout.

Requirements

• High school diploma, GED, or vocational technical certification.
• At least 3 years of hands-on electronics manufacturing experience focused on advanced SMT and BGA rework.
• U.S. citizenship and ability to obtain and maintain a SECRET security clearance.
• Direct experience operating automated or semi-automated Air-Vac DRS/ONYX systems or equivalent high-end industrial convective hot-gas rework platforms.
• Current or prior IPC-7711/7721 certification and J-STD-001 certification.
• Exceptional manual dexterity and experience working under high-magnification optical microscopes.
• Ability to interpret engineering drawings, schematics, material bills, and custom manufacturing process documentation.
• Solid understanding of Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) safety protocols in a defense manufacturing environment.

Nice To Haves

• Associate degree in Electronics Engineering Technology or a related discipline.
• Experience handling high-thermal-mass or multilayer aerospace-grade assemblies.
• Familiarity with X-ray inspection equipment used to verify post-rework BGA solder integrity and voiding percentages.
• Experience troubleshooting complex digital PWAs containing processors, memory, FPGAs, CPLDs, and microcontrollers to component-level root cause and coordinating or performing repairs and retests.
• Experience identifying rework needed to isolate or repair problems.
• Familiarity working closely with engineers to devise and monitor tests for troubleshooting problems.
• Familiarity with standard test equipment such as oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers, and power supplies.

Responsibilities

• Perform selective de-soldering, component removal, site cleaning, and re-soldering of high-density SMT devices, including BGAs, LGAs, QFNs, and CSPs, using semi-automated Air-Vac hot-air systems.
• Program, monitor, and optimize localized hot-air or hot-gas thermal profiles using a closed-loop process to ensure uniform joint temperatures without damaging the PCB or adjacent components.
• Clean solder pads without contact using vacuum site cleaning, apply flux or paste, and align components with high-resolution vision systems to meet micron-level placement tolerances.
• Inspect components under microscopy for compliance with IPC-A-610 and J-STD-001 standards.
• Coordinate with Quality Engineers to document nonconformances and process Material Review Board (MRB) dispositions.
• Perform basic maintenance, calibration checks, and tool changes on Air-Vac stations, including nozzles, vacuum cups, and thermocouples.
• Potentially troubleshoot production and field technical issues, support component-change qualifications and prototype-to-low-rate-production transitions, manage and support the lab, maintain test and development hardware, and perform board checkout.

Benefits

• Medical, financial, and other benefits, dependent on the position offered.
• Additional cash or stock incentives may be provided as part of the compensation package.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: High school or GED